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we might please Him; but we, being weak, and material in thought, have preferred material things to the commandment of love, and clinging to them, we fight with men. Whereas it is necessary to prefer the love of every man to all visible things, and to the body itself; (14__366> which is a mark of love for God, as the Lord Himself shows in the Gospels: "He who loves me," he says, "will keep my commandments." And what is the commandment that by keeping we may love him? Hear him saying: "This is my commandment, that you love one another." Do you see that love for one another constitutes love for God, which is the fulfillment of every commandment of God? Therefore He commands not to cling to them, but also for everyone who desires to be his disciple to renounce all his possessions.

8 (8th). And the Brother said: "Since you said, Father, that it is necessary to prefer to all visible things, and to the very

body, the love of every man, how can I love the one who hates me and turns away from me? And if he envies me and assails me with insults, and contrives deceits and attempts to plot against me, how can I love him? By nature, Father, this seems impossible to me, as the passion of grief naturally compels one to turn away from the one who caused the grief.

And the Elder answered: "In the case of reptiles and beasts that are led by nature, it is truly impossible

not to defend oneself in every way possible against what afflicts it; but in the case of those created in the image of God and led by reason, and deemed worthy of the knowledge of God and having received a law from him, it is possible (14__368> not to turn away from those who cause grief and to love those who hate. Therefore the Lord also, saying, "Love your enemies; do good to those who hate you," and so forth, does not command impossible things, but clearly possible things; otherwise he would not have punished the transgressor. And the Lord himself makes this clear, showing us by his very deeds, as did all his disciples, who struggled unto death for the love of neighbor, and prayed fervently for those who killed them. But since we are lovers of matter and lovers of pleasure, and prefer these things more than the commandment, for this reason we are not able to love those who hate us; but for these reasons we also often turn away from those who love us, being in a worse state than beasts and reptiles; and for this reason, being unable to follow in the footsteps of God, we are not able to know his purpose, so that we may receive power.

9 (9th). And the Brother said: "Behold, Father, I have left everything, family, possessions, luxury, and the glory

of the world, and I possess nothing in life except my body; and I am not able to love the brother who hates me and turns away from me, even if I force myself not to return evil for evil in deed. Tell me then what I must do, so that I may be able to love him from the heart, or anyone who in any way afflicts and plots against me.

And the Elder answered: "It is impossible for anyone to love the one who afflicts him, even if he seems to have renounced the matter of the world,

if he does not know the purpose of the Lord in truth; but if, by the Lord's grace, he is able (14__370> to know, and hastens to walk according to it, he is able to love from the heart the one who hates and afflicts, just as the Apostles, having known, loved.

10 (10th). And the Brother said: "And what was the purpose of the Lord? I beg to know, Father." And the Elder said:

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εὐαρεστήσωμεν· ἀλλ᾽ ἡμεῖς ἀσθενεῖς ὄντες, καὶ ὑλικοὶ τὴν διάνοιαν, προετιμήσαμεν τὰ ὑλικὰ τῆς ἐντολῆς τῆς ἀγάπης, καὶ αὐτῶν ἀντεχόμενοι τοῖς ἀνθρώποις μαχόμεθα· δέον πάντων τῶν ὁρωμένων, καὶ αὐτοῦ τοῦ σώματος, τὴν παντὸς ἀνθρώπου προτιμῆσαι ἀγάπην· (14__366> ἥτις ἐστὶν γνώρισμα τῆς εἰς Θεὸν ἀγάπης, καθὼς αὐτὸς ὁ Κύριος ἐν Εὐαγγελίοις δείκνυσιν· "Ὁ ἀγαπῶν ἐμέ, φησί, τὰς ἐντολάς μου τηρήσει». Καὶ τίς ἐστιν ἡ ἐντολὴ ἣν τηρήσαντες αὐτὸν ἀγαπήσωμεν, αὐτοῦ ἄκουσον λέγοντος· "Αὕτη δέ ἐστιν ἡ ἐντολὴ ἡ ἐμή, ἵνα ἀγαπᾶτε ἀλλήλους». Ὁρᾷς ὅτι ἡ ἀλλήλων ἀγάπη τὴν εἰς Θεὸν ἀγάπην συνίστησιν, ἥτις ἐστὶ πλήρωμα πάσης Θεοῦ ἐντολῆς; ∆ιὰ τοῦτο οὖν κελεύει αὐτῶν μὴ ἀντέχεσθαι, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἀποτάξασθαι πᾶσι τοῖς ὑπάρχουσιν αὐτῷ, πάντα τὸν αὐτῷ μαθητεύειν ἐπιθυμητικῶς ἔχοντα».

8 (η'). Καὶ ὁ Ἀδελφὸς εἶπεν· "Ἐπειδὴ εἶπες, Πάτερ, ὅτι δέον πάντων τῶν ὁρωμένων, καὶ αὐτοῦ τοῦ

σώματος, τὴν παντὸς ἀνθρώπου προτιμῆσαι ἀγάπην, πῶς δύναμαι τὸν μισοῦντά με καὶ ἀποστρεφόμενον ἀγαπῆσαι; Εἰ δὲ καὶ φθονεῖ μοι καὶ λοιδορίαις κατατοξεύει, καὶ δόλους κατασχευάζει καὶ ἐπιβουλεύειν ἐπιχειρεῖ, πῶς δύναμαι αὐτὸν ἀγαπῆσαι; Φύσει μοι, Πάτερ, φαίνεται τοῦτο ἀδύνατον, τοῦ πάθους τῆς λύπης φυσικῶς τὸν λυπήσαντα ἀποστρέφεσθαι ἀναγκάζοντος».

Καὶ ἀπεκρίθη ὁ Γέρων· "Ἐπὶ μὲν ἑρπετῶν καὶ θηρίων τῶν ὑπὸ φύσεως ἀγομένων, τῷ ὄντι ἀδύνατον

μὴ πάντως ἀμύνασθαι ὅσον δύναται τὸ καταπονοῦν· ἐπὶ δὲ τῶν κατ᾽ εἰκόνα Θεοῦ κτισθέντων καὶ λόγῳ ἀγομένων, καὶ γνώσεως Θεοῦ καταξιωθέντων καὶ νόμον παρ᾽ αὐτοῦ δεξαμένων, δυνατὸν τοὺς λυποῦντας (14__368> μὴ ἀποστρέφεσθαι καὶ τοὺς μισοῦντας ἀγαπᾶν. ∆ιὸ καὶ ὁ Κύριος, "Ἀγαπᾶτε», λέγων, "τοὺς ἐχθροὺς ὑμῶν· καλῶς ποιεῖτε τοῖς μισοῦσιν ὑμᾶς" καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς, οὐχ ὡς ἀδύνατα ἐντέλλεται, ἀλλὰ ὡς δυνατὰ δηλονότι· ἐπεὶ οὐκ ἂν ἐκόλασε τὸν παραβαίνοντα. ∆ηλοῖ δὲ αὐτὸς ὁ Κύριος αὐτοῖς τοῖς ἔργοις ἡμῖν δείξας, καὶ οἱ μαθηταὶ αὐτοῦ πάντες ὑπὲρ τῆς εἰς τὸν πλησίον ἀγάπης μέχρι θανάτου ἀγωνισάμενοι, καὶ ὑπὲρ τῶν ἀποκτεινάντων θερμῶς προσευξάμενοι. Ἀλλ᾽ ἐπειδὴ ἡμεῖς ἐσμεν φιλόϋλοι καὶ φιλήδονοι, καὶ ταῦτα τῆς ἐντολῆς μᾶλλον προτιμῶντες, διὰ τοῦτο τοὺς μισοῦντας ἀγαπῆσαι οὐ δυνάμεθα· ἀλλὰ καὶ τοὺς ἀγαπῶντας διὰ ταῦτα πολλάκις ἀποστρεφόμεθα, θηρίων καὶ ἑρπετῶν χεῖρον διακείμενοι· καὶ διὰ τοῦτο τοῖς ἴχνεσι τοῦ Θεοῦ ἀκολουθῆσαι μὴ δυνάμενοι, οὐδὲ τὸν σκοπὸν αὐτοῦ γνῶναι δυνάμεθα, ἵνα λάβωμεν δύναμιν».

9 (θ'). Καὶ ὁ Ἀδελφὸς εἶπεν· "Ἰδού, Πάτερ, κατέλιπον πάντα, συγγένειαν, ὕπαρξιν, τρυφήν, καὶ τὴν δόξαν

τοῦ κόσμου, καὶ οὐδὲν κέκτημαι ἐν τῷ βίῳ πλὴν τοῦ σώματος· καὶ τὸν ἀδελφὸν μισοῦντά με καὶ ἀποστρεφόμενον ἀγαπῆσαι οὐ δύναμαι, εἰ καὶ βιάζομαι κακὸν ἀντὶ κακοῦ κατ᾽ ἐνέργειαν μὴ ἀνταποδοῦναι. Εἰπὲ οὖν τί ὀφείλω ποιῆσαι, ἵνα δυνηθῶ αὐτὸν ἐκ καρδίας ἀγαπῆσαι, ἢ καὶ τὸν καθοιονδήποτε τρόπον θλίβοντα καὶ ἐπιβουλεύοντα».

Καὶ ἀπεκρίθη ὁ Γέρων· "Ἀδύνατόν τινα ἀγαπῆσαι τὸν θλίβοντα, κἂν τῇ ὕλῃ τοῦ κόσμου ἔδοξεν

ἀποτάξασθαι, ἐὰν μὴ τὸν σκοπὸν τοῦ Κυρίου ἐν ἀληθείᾳ γινώσκῃ· ἐὰν δὲ τοῦ Κυρίου αὐτῷ χαριζομένου δυνηθῇ (14__370> γνῶναι, καὶ σπεύδῃ κατ᾽ αὐτὸν περιπατεῖν, δύναται ἐκ καρδίας ἀγαπῆσαι τὸν μισοῦντα καὶ θλίβοντα, ὥσπερ καὶ οἱ Ἀπόστολοι ἐγνωκότες ἠγάπων».

10 (ι'). Καὶ εἶπεν ὁ Ἀδελφός· "Καὶ τίς ὁ σκοπὸς τοῦ Κυρίου ἦν, παρακαλῶ γνῶναι, Πάτερ». Καὶ εἶπεν ὁ Γέρων·